Speaking at a weekly press briefing on Thursday, IMF Communications Director Julie Kozack said a staff team is expected to visit Pakistan from February 25 to hold discussions on the third review under the EFF and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).
Kozack noted that Pakistan currently holds a primary fiscal surplus of 1.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) in fiscal year 2025, which was “in line with programme targets.” Headline inflation has been “relatively contained,” she added, while Pakistan recorded its first current account surplus in 14 years in fiscal year 2025.
Read: IMF review tied to governance
Kozack also referred to the recent publication of the IMF’s Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Report on Pakistan, which she said “includes proposals for reforms, including simplifying tax policy design, levelling the playing field for public procurement, and improving the asset declaration transparency.”
It was further stated that the IMF’s review discussions will assess Pakistan’s progress under the programme and determine the next steps in disbursements tied to reform benchmarks.
The implementation of the Governance and Corruption Diagnostic report and the National Fiscal Pact will top the agenda of the upcoming review talks for the release of the next loan tranches worth $1.2 billion.
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The global lender’s continued focus on areas that, until a few years ago, were dealt with by non-financial institutions underscores that it now attaches equal importance to areas considered the root causes of poor governance, tax evasion and the prevalence of corruption in Pakistan.
Progress on these plans will determine whether the IMF sends a technical assistance mission to Pakistan, which federal authorities have so far resisted.
Led by its Mission Chief for Pakistan, Iva Petrova, the IMF team will first land in Karachi on February 25, where it will hold exclusive discussions with the State Bank of Pakistan, before proceeding to Islamabad.
Talks with the federal and provincial governments are scheduled to begin on March 2 and are likely to conclude on March 11.